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Historical Document:
June 5, 2007
Content Source:
Office of Minority Health & Health Disparities (OMHD)

Summary of Minority Student Training
Program Activities Fiscal Year (FY) 2006

Introduction Minority Health Professions Foundation (MHPF) Kennedy Krieger Institute (KKI) Public Health Science Institute (PHSI) Hispanic Serving Health Professions Schools (HSHPS) Other Training Programs
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Office of Minority Health and Health Disparities (OMHD) support summer and academic year training and enrichment programs for minority students through external partnerships with the Hispanic Serving Health Professions Schools (HSHPS), the Association of Minority Health Professions School’s (AMHPS) Minority Health Professions Foundation (MHPF), Kennedy Krieger Institute (KKI), the Public Health Sciences Institute (PHSI) of Morehouse College, Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities (HACU), and the American Indian Science and Engineering Society (AISES).
In FY 2006, the programs, which are supported by CIOs, state and local health departments, academia, national and community-based organizations, and international research partners, placed a total of 117 minority and American Indian students in the summer internship/fellowship programs. Each student was paired with mentors who volunteered their time to help develop tomorrow’s public health leaders. In addition, 29 middle and high school students participated in the Starlab program managed by MHPF in collaboration with Clark Atlanta University, 40 students are currently enrolled in the Masters in Public Health (MPH) program at the Morehouse School of Medicine, and more than 700 racially and ethnically diverse students attended the MHPF Annual Symposium on Career Opportunities in Biomedical Sciences.  OMHD would like to take this opportunity to thank the CIO leaders, other organizations, institutions, and mentors who provided support to develop the students’ research and leadership skills.
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Synopsis of Training Programs with External Partners:
Minority Health Professions Foundation (MHPF) was established in 1983 as a 501(c) (3) non-profit organization to support the mission of AMHPS and its nine member institutions.  The association serves to promote optimum health among poor and minority populations by engaging the collaborative resources of minority health professions schools – schools of medicine, nursing, pharmacy, dentistry and veterinary medicine. MHPF administers the following five training and enrichment programs under Program Announcement (PA) AA131:
1.	Dr. James A. Ferguson Emerging Infectious Diseases Fellowship Program is supported primarily by the National Center for Infectious Diseases (NCID) and the National Center for HIV, STD and TB Prevention (NCHSTP).  It is designed to increase the students’ knowledge of public health and public health career paths and to introduce underrepresented minorities to careers in public health and infectious diseases.  The Ferguson Fellowship program is operated by MHPF.  A program evaluation conducted for NCID by the Research Triangle Institute International surveyed all former Ferguson Fellows who had been in the program from 1999-2004 (a total of 150 fellows).  The March 2006 evaluation study report revealed that 15% of the respondents (107 former Fellows) became employed full time at CDC.  In the summer of 2006, there were 17 Ferguson students.
2.	Public Health Summer Fellows (PHSF) is operated by Morehouse School of Medicine in collaboration with MHPF.  PHSF is an undergraduate program designed to expose students to community-based opportunities and careers in public health.  This year PHSF was also supported by NCHSTP.  There were 10 summer fellows this summer.
3.	Starlab is operated by MHPF in collaboration with Clark Atlanta University and targets middle school and high school students to expose and prepare them for careers in public health and biomedical sciences.  Starlab was started at CDC by MHPF, the National Organization for the Professional Advancement of Black Chemists and Chemical Engineers, and minority scientists at the National Center for Environmental Health (NCEH).  Students conduct hands-on laboratory experiments on selected topics in chemistry, biology, medical technology and engineering.  They also present research findings and have the opportunity to network and interact with minority scientists.  Historically, Starlab was supported by the NCEH and the Office of the Director.  This year it was supported by OMHD, NCHSTP, and the Coordinating Office for Terrorism Preparedness and Emergency Response.  Twenty-nine students participated in Starlab.
4.	MPH Program is operated by the Morehouse School of Medicine with support from CDC.  The program prepares individuals to organize and implement programs to improve the health, quality of life and well being of communities and people, through public health education, research and service.  The Department of Community Health and Preventive Medicine, housed in the Louis W. Sullivan National Center for Primary Care, runs the MPH program which has produced 97 minority public health graduates since its inception.  There are 40 students enrolled in the MPH program for the 2006 Fall semester.
5.	Annual Symposium on Career Opportunities in Biomedical Sciences (Symposium) – The Symposium is a collaborative effort between AMHPS, MHPF, CDC, Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, the National Institutes of Health, and other public and private agencies.  It is designed to encourage college, and junior and senior high school students to pursue careers in biomedical and public health sciences.  Each year the Symposium is hosted by an AMHPS member school.  In FY 2006, the Symposium which attracted approximately 700 racially and ethnically diverse students from 20 states across the United States was hosted by Texas Southern University in Houston, Texas.  Preliminary results of a retrospective and longitudinal evaluation to determine its impact indicate that the symposium is having a significant impact on students’ career choices–particularly their knowledge about careers in public health and their awareness of employment opportunities at CDC.
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Kennedy Krieger Institute (KKI) is a comprehensive resource for children with disabilities, offering patient care/clinical services, training/education, research and community services.  KKI is affiliated with Johns Hopkins University, and is an internationally recognized facility dedicated to improving the lives of children and adolescents with developmental disabilities.  KKI administers the newest addition to OMHD’s training partnerships, the Research Initiatives for Student Enhancement (RISE) program under PA AA131.
	RISE is a collaborative program with Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, and HBCUs to provide research experience, education and training for HBCU graduate and medical students who are interested in pursuing research in the field of public health. With this partnership, OMHD is able to expand the number of internships for minority students and focus on areas of research which will contribute to the elimination of health disparities involving persons with developmental disabilities. This summer 12 students participated in the inaugural RISE internship program.
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Public Health Science Institute (PHSI) of Morehouse College – PHSI was established in May of 1988 as an academic program designed to formulate and implement strategies that would lead to positive health outcomes for African Americans.  The PHSI cooperative agreement program is operated by the Morehouse College, Division of Science and Mathematics.  The program operates three major components under PA 05053:  (1) Student Training – Undergraduate Internships, Graduate Fellows, Associates, and Post Doctoral Fellowships;  (2) Academic – Public Health Minor, Public Health Awareness Conference, and Atlanta University Center (AUC) Public Health Careers Society; and (3) Faculty Development – Research Center on Health Disparities.  PHSI’s programs are supported by OMHD, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion (NCCDPHP), NCHSTP, the National Institute for Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS), and other public and private institutions. The PHSI student training programs include the following 3 programs:
1.	Project IMHOTEP is a summer internship program designed to increase the knowledge and skills of undergraduate students who are rising juniors, seniors or recent graduates in the areas of biostatistics, epidemiology, and occupational safety and health.  This summer, 32 students participated in Project IMHOTEP, including nine students who were assigned to NIOSH laboratories, one assigned to Milacron/Cimcool Global Industrial Fluids Division (Cincinnati, Ohio); four assigned to Carnegie-Mellon University (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania), Department of Statistics, and eight students who participated under the auspices of PHSI’s International Exchange Program with the National Institute of Medical Research in Tanzania.  From 1981 to 2005, according to PHSI evaluation and tracking data, of 343 former Project IMHOTEP interns, 155 or 45% are public health practitioners.  In addition, 15 of these students, or 4.4% are currently working at CDC as a permanent employee, Epidemic Intelligence Service (EIS) Officer or contractor.
2.	PHSI Research Internships are two-year academic internship opportunities that offer comprehensive public health research experience to students from various academic disciplines. One student from each of the AUC institutions is selected to participate in the program in the second semester of their sophomore year. During the next two academic years, selected students serve as interns, and they are required to complete a minor in public health. As part of the research experience, interns work on a year-long research project with CDC personnel and present their research at various public health conferences. There were six PHSI interns in FY 2006.
3.	Graduate Fellows, Associates and Post-Doctoral Fellowships:  Under these programs, doctoral and masters-level graduate students assist with instruction of PHSI courses, design surveys, complete data entry and conduct small analyses for PHSI projects. The students also engage in public health research with CDC scientists. This component of the PHSI program is supported primarily by NCCDPHP and NCHSTP. In FY 2006, there were three students serving in these graduate level positions–one Post Doctoral Fellow and two Research Associates.
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HSHPS, the National Association of Hispanic-Serving Health Professions Schools, is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization that was established in 1996 with support from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services in response to Executive Order 12900, “Educational Excellence for Hispanic Americans.” The organization was launched as a part of the “Hispanic Agenda for Action Initiative” and is the only national organization representing Hispanic-serving health professions schools. Today, HSHPS represents 22 medical schools and five schools of public health nationwide serving over 40% of Hispanic medical school graduates and 15.5% of Hispanic graduates of schools of public health in the continental United States as well as a broader network of more than 300 researchers who address health issues among Hispanics. The HSHPS student training program is comprised of three different initiatives:
1.	Summer Students Internship Program is designed to foster the development of public health and research skills of Hispanic medical and public health students in order to increase the number of students who pursue careers in epidemiology, preventive medicine, and public health research.  The internship is an intensive 10-week experience with CDC staff at the central offices of the CDC in Atlanta, Georgia.  There were eight students in the Summer Internship program in FY 2006.
2.	HSHPS US-Mexico Border Student Internship Program is a 10-week traineeship that places students at one of the HSHPS member institutions in the border region. The program provides each trainee with an increased understanding of public health along the U.S.-Mexico border  through practical experiences with up to one half of program time to be spent in the field. Also, each trainee is matched, according to the area of interest outlined in his or her application, with a mentor who specializes in border health. In addition, the trainee will be exposed to a variety of different projects being conducted along the U.S.-Mexico border. There were seven students in the program in FY 2006.
3.	Student Fellowship Program is a six-month traineeship which provides the student with an intensive experience with CDC staff in Atlanta offices as well as other satellite offices within CDC/ATSDR and NIOSH.  There were five fellows in FY 2006.
Since 2002, HSHPS has supported 73 students in its training programs.
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Other Training Programs with External Partners:
OMHD collaborates with the Atlanta Human Resources Center to support the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities (HACU), and the American Indian Science and Engineering Society (AISES) programs to further broaden opportunities for Hispanic/Latino and American Indian/Alaska Native (AI/AN) students.
1.	AISES is a summer program that provides qualified AI/AN college students with opportunities to explore potential federal service careers.  The internship is a student learning work experience to gain knowledge and understanding of federal agencies and their operations.  During the summer of FY 2006, there were six AI/AN students at CDC.  The AISES program was supported by ATSDR, NCCDPHP, NCHSTP and NIOSH.  Five students were placed in Atlanta CIOs, and one was placed at NIOSH Cincinnati.
2.	HACU is a non-profit 501(c) (3) organization that represents more than 300 colleges and universities committed to successful Latino/Hispanic education in the United States, Puerto Rico, Latin America and Spain.  HACU is a national educational association that represents Hispanic Serving Institution’s (HSIs).  In collaboration with several federal agencies and private corporations, HACU recruits college students for a paid summer and semester long internships.  The internships vary in length and provide the student with direct experience in the federal government and private corporate sectors.  The HACU program was supported by the Office of the Director, Office of the Chief Operating Officer, Coordinating Center for Health Information and Services, NCCDPHP, National Center for Health Statistics, NCID, NCHSTP, and NIOSH.  In FY 2006, there were 11 students in the HACU program at CDC.
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